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The Dave Krieg Award is given annually to the state's top senior quarterback as part of the WSN Senior Football Awards. The award is named after former D.C. Everest and Milton College athlete Dave Krieg, who went on to play 12 seasons in the NFL and still ranks in the Top 15 all-time in most passing categories.

The pre-season watch list was trimmed down to 25 semi-finalists, and six finalists for the award have now been selected. Winners will be announced the week of the state finals.

Cole Bensen is one of the few quarterbacks in the state this year to go over 1000 yards both as a passer and rusher. In leading Bay Port to an unbeaten regular season and number one ranking in the final WisSports.net Division 1 Coaches Poll, Bensen completed 84-of-150 passes (56%) for 1,462 yards with 17 touchdowns and six interceptions, good for a quarterback rating of 110.5. He also rushed for 1,303 yards with 23 touchdowns this season, averaging 6.5 yards per carry. In two years as a starter, he guided the Pirates to a 22-3 record.

Aquinas won the Division 5 state championship last year as Jackson Flottmeyer was a WFCA All-State choice. He has a strong chance to repeat those accolades again as a senior, as he has completed 121-of-184 passes (65.8%) for 2,273 yards and 26 touchdowns with eight interceptions in 12 games, with a 129.8 passer rating. He's added seven rushing scores as well. In the team's opening playoff win over Durand-Arkansaw, he completed nine-of-11 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns with a perfect passer rating. A four-year varsity player and three-year starter, he has thrown for 5,800 yards and 71 touchdowns in his career.

Jerry Kaminski saw limited action on varsity as a freshman but gained valuable experience splitting time in the 2021 spring season. He took over as the starter in the fall of 2021, guiding Sun Prairie to the Division 1 state title game as an All-State selection. He has been even better as a senior at Sun Prairie East, completing 179-of-289 passes (61.9%) for 2,785 yards and 40 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. His passer rating of 123.3 is among the best in the state for his coach and father Brian Kaminski. The North Dakota commit has thrown for 6,112 yards and 77 touchdowns in his career.

Nate Kollath has put together three prolific years as the starting quarterback at Sussex Hamilton, getting better each year. As a senior, he completed 62.2% of his passes for 2,639 yards and 28 touchdowns with nine interceptions, good for a passer rating of 106.6. He's also a threat running the ball, as he finished a second straight year with more than 700 rushing yards, scoring 20 touchdowns on the ground this season. For his career he has thrown for 6,173 yards and 73 touchdowns with another 37 rushing scores.

A.J. Korth of Menasha is another multi-year starter who it seems has been on the varsity team for the Bluejays forever. In his senior season, he threw the ball better than ever, completing 61.8% of his passes for 1,374 yards with 23 touchdowns and just five interceptions, good for a passer rating of 117.2. One of the state's top dual-threat quarterbacks once again, he rushed for 1,208 yards and 11 touchdowns this year. In his career he threw for 3,684 yards and 58 touchdowns with 3,661 yards and 45 touchdowns on the ground.

Chase Spellman threw his first pass on varsity as a freshman at Kettle Moriane, and took over as the starter the following season. He played with a nagging shoulder injury as a junior but still put up big numbers as the Lasers advanced to the state finals. This season, he's been the consummate leader of the team's offense, making sure the team is in the right play call, even if it is a run instead of a pass. He's completed 57.3% of his passes for 1,916 yards with 21 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He's added 345 yards and five scores on the ground for the top-seeded Lasers.

Travis Wilson serves as the WisSports.net General Manager, Football Editor, and contributing writer for other parts of the site. Wilson was selected as part of the Sports 40 Under 40 list by Coach & AD Magazine and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association for 2019. The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) named Travis the 2015 recipient of the Dave McClain Distinguished Service Award. He currently serves on the WFCA Executive Board and is a member of the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. A graduate of Richland Center High School and Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Travis was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, baseball, basketball), inducted to the Richland Center High School Hall of Fame in 2023, and currently resides in Reedsburg. You can follow him on Twitter at @travisWSN.

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.